SEARCH AND DETENTION OF LAWYERS AGAINST LAW AND PROCEDURAL RULES BY BREAKING THE DOORS WITHOUT WAITING FOR THE REPRESENTATIVE OF THE BAR AND THE PROSECUTOR TO ARRIVE ARE AN ATTACK AND INTIMIDATION TOWARDS THE DEFENSE AND LAWYERS. WE KEEP TRACK OF IT!

Today, we have experienced a black day in the history of law. Offices of the Progressive Lawyers Association, or ÇHD, along with the offices of many of our colleagues were searched in the operation staged simultaneously in various provinces including Istanbul, which resulted in detention practice.

As well as the searches being based on organization allegations without any concrete allegation as in many cases, this time even more serious unlawfulnesses have been experienced. Contrary to the explicit provisions of the law, police broke into some of the lawyers offices breaking the doors without waiting for the Public Prosecutor and the Representative of the Bar Association to arrive, correspondence and the documents between the lawyers and their clients have been observed, the searches have been videotaped and detention has been exercised without complying with the criteria of necessity and proportionality. Moreover, the President of Istanbul Bar Association was denied entry to the headoffice of the ÇHD, which was only a trial that did not succeed. Even more, the search scene has been videotaped contrary to law. All of these are contrary to the Criminal Procedural Code, the Attorneyship Code, law, universal rules and the honor of attorneyship profession.

What happened today explicitly displays to anyone who still would like to see what kind of an advanced democracy we moved towards, while abstact accusations and unlawful practices are not directed towards the attorneys that easily in any other state governed by the rule of law. It is terrifying for the legal security, justice and democracy that being the safeguard of the peoples right to legal remedies and their right to defense, the lawyers, per se,undergo illegal treatments.Whatever the accusation might be, it is not a favor, but an obligation for any investigation to be conducted within the legal framework.Everyone should ask himself what the consequences would be, if lawyers being the safeguard of rights and law were dragged into an unsafe position. All these experienced and practices are an explicit attack towards the attorneyship profession and its honor as well as the peoples right to legal remedies.

We would like it to be known that Istanbul Bar Association has been strictly keeping track of the process from its very beginning, and it is going to keep on follow-up, it is going to exercise any democratic-legitimate right it has, and it is going to keep track of any illegal acts and practices. No pressure shall intimidate the defense, lawyers and the bar associations in a democratic state governed by the rule of law. We will go on with our struggle with determination.